Azeri Envoy To U.S. Defends Aliyev Victory

Azerbaijan's ambassador to the United States, Elin Suleymanov, has acknowledged that his country's October 9 presidential poll suffered irregularities and problems but said the election of Ilham Aliyev to a third presidential term came as "no surprise."

In an opinion piece published by "The Washington Times" newspaper on October 21, Suleymanov called on Washington to preserve its partnership with Baku in fighting terrorism in Afghanistan and promoting Europe's energy security. It also called for the two sides to "continue making news by breaking existing convenient stereotypes, not by imposing new ones."

The Obama administration said earlier that the Azerbaijani vote had fallen short of international standards.

On October 21, U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan Richard Morningstar issued a statement saying that Washington was looking forward to working closely with Aliyev's government. The statement added, "As with any partner, we have our differences, but we also have many shared critical interests."